Saudi considers building first nuclear power plant
SAUDI ARABIA - Saudi Arabia, the worldÂ’s top oil exporter, is looking at building its first nuclear power plant, an official told an Arabic-language daily.
Minister of Water and Electricity, Abdullah bin Abdul-Rahman Al Husayen, told the Al Watan newspaper: “The kingdom is working on building a pilot plant fuelled by nuclear energy” to generate electricity.
In May FrenchÂ’s Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said Saudi Arabia and France were close to finalizing a civilian nuclear energy cooperation agreement. Power demand in the kingdom has surged due to rapid economic growth, and lack of infrastructure to meet its domestic requirements.
Saudi Arabia, the largest Arab economy, already faces costly power outages of up to five hours a day in the industrial zone of the commercial hub of Jeddah. Last month, Gulf countries took a step towards easing regional power shortages by linking up their electricity grids.
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain signed a power trading agreement in July that could start seeing power flow across borders soon. Civilian nuclear power programs are also being explored by a number of Gulf oil exporting countries.
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Georgia Power customers to see $21 reduction on June bills
ATLANTA - Georgia Power announced that the typical residential customer using 1,000-kilowatt hours will receive an $11.29 credit on their June bill.
This reflects implementation of a one-time $51.5 million credit for customers, approved by the Georgia Public Service Commission, as a result of
Georgia Power's 2018 financial results.
Pairing the June credit with new, lower fuel rates recently announced, the typical residential customer would see a reduction of $21.55 in June.
The amount each customer receives will vary based on their 2018 usage. Georgia Power will apply the credit to June bills for customers who had active accounts as of Dec. 31, 2018,…